TONOPAH -- Beatty's undermanned football team ran into major problems Friday night, as the Hornets fell 56-6 to Tonopah in a Nevada Class A Central Division game. Still, the Hornets are in the chase for a post-season playoff berth.

The Hornets, 2-2 in the division and 4-4 in all games, play their Homecoming Game Thursday night against Indian Springs, 3-1, 5-4. The winner will be in consideration for a place in the playoffs, which have first-round action Nov. 4.

Tonopah has already clinched the No. 1 seed for the third straight season, as the Muckers ran their record to 4-0 in the division, 7-1 in all games. The Muckers travel Thursday to Round Mountain, 1-3 division, in search of their 15th consecutive Central victory.

"Tonopah is a good team; coach (Curt) McElroy is so lucky to have such talent on his team," said Gus Sullivan, Beatty's first-year coach. "Their players have no let up ... it's a dream team.

"We played with a lot of heart, and no one gave up," said Sullivan, "but we had only 16 kids in uniform. Jeremy Peden played almost the whole game with a broken ankle. Our center, Nick Gorman, was bothered by an ankle injury. Joe Serrano had to be examined; he was exhausted. Tony Heilman was out and we had a couple players ineligible."

And quarterback Matt Everts was banged around the whole game and eventually had to be transported for a checkup at the Nye Regional Medical Center.

"Matt couldn't catch his breath after being hit late in the game, so the EMTs decided to take him to the hospital for an examination," said Sullivan. "He's doing fine and he'll play again."

Everts scored Beatty's touchdown on a 67-yard run with 11:03 left in the second quarter, and he had a 70-yard kickoff return for a touchdown nullified by a penalty at midfield. Everts, a senior, completed 5 of 19 passes for 41 yards with no interceptions and ran 10 times for 98 yards against a blitzing, aggressive Mucker defense led by Bobby Murray, a 270-pound senior nose guard. The Hornets had 143 yards total offense.

"We got everybody into the game in the second quarter," said McElroy, whose team led 38-0 when Everts scored. "We ran to the ball defensively; they were excited to play again." The Muckers had been off for two weeks, with the layoff forced by Henderson Warren-Walker's decision to forfeit its remaining games and cancel its season.

The Muckers had 284 yards total offense, not including a 79-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Erik White. Quarterback Mitch Lehner was 7-for-9 for 164 yards and four touchdowns, while he rushed three times for 47 yards and a touchdown.

White added a pair of touchdowns on runs of six and 16 yards, and wideout Kevin McElroy caught an eight-yard scoring pass. Dakota Smith caught a 14-yard TD pass, while Guy Wagner took a shovel pass 65 yards for another score. The Muckers added a safety when a punt blocked by Billy Hammar bounced out of the end zone.

"All of our younger kids were able to get some experience," said McElroy. "Beatty did some things well, but we are coming together as a team ... and we keep on improving." Muckers 56, Hornets 6

BHS 0 6 0 -- 6

THS 30 8 18 -- 56

(Game stopped by Nevada Class A's 45-point mercy rule with 6:55 left in the third quarter.)

First Quarter

T -- Kevin McElroy 8 pass from Mitch Lehner (McElroy pass from Lehner), 8-0, 10:39.

T -- Erik White 6 run (run failed), 14-0, 8:25.

T -- Lehner 25 run (Steven Carnell pass from Lehner), 22-0, 6:17.

T -- Safety, punt blocked out of the end zone, 24-0, 1:45.

T -- White 16 run (pass failed), 30-0, 0:26.

Second Quarter

T -- Guy Wagner 65 pass from Lehner (Maurice Kennedy run), 38-0, 11:12.

B -- Everts 67 run (run failed), 38-6, 11:03.

Third Quarter

T -- White 79 kickoff return (pass failed), 44-6, 11:48.

T -- Dakota Smith 14 pass from Lehner (run failed), 50-6, 11:05.

T -- Billy Hammar 34 pass from Lehner (no attempt), 56-6, 6:55.